This article was reviewed in July 2021 and is up-to-date.   As the summer season winds down, so do public agency departments that hire seasonal workers to staff summer camps, pools, extended park and recreation hours, and a myriad of season-specific facilities and activities. But, just how do seasonal workers impact the agency’s health and retirement benefit obligations? The Affordable Care Act (ACA), Seasonal Worker Exception The number of seasonal workers you hire may impact…

This article was reviewed in July 2021 and is up-to-date.   Often times, an employee may know that discipline or a poor performance evaluation is imminent. Occasionally, such an employee will engage in a preemptive strike—“You can’t discipline me or give me a poor performance evaluation now since I have submitted a complaint.” While this may not necessarily be the norm, it is also not unheard of, causing employers to go from being confident in…

On June 15, 2021, the State of California took a step towards returning to some normalcy when it officially reopened for business after over a year of restrictions and closures due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In doing so, the state announced it would be easing, for vaccinated individuals, some of the restrictions set in place regarding capacity limits, social distancing, and mask wearing. One of the significant changes in the restrictions is that fully vaccinated…

The problems facing public agencies, many of which are struggling just to keep their heads above water, may get much worse in the near future.  The California Legislature is currently debating Senate Bill (SB) 278 (Leyva), which if passed would create new and in some cases retroactive financial burdens and uncertainties for local public agencies already struggling to fund their pension obligations. Specifically, SB 278 would shift the responsibility for paying disallowed compensation reported to…

We are excited to announce a new video series designed especially to serve our public safety clients. Our short Public Safety Video Briefings will tackle cutting-edge issues and core principles relevant to public safety employers. We hope you find these videos useful and thought-provoking.  …

This article was reviewed in June 2021 and is up-to-date.   Prevention of liability starts with auditing your agency’s personnel rules.  Indeed, in an employment-related lawsuit, the applicable personnel rule is often “Exhibit A.”  Each year, public agencies face changes to employment laws and regulations, best management practices, and internal changes to procedures.  Thus, the outcome of a lawsuit may just depend on whether the agency has audited and updated their personnel rules to reflect…

We are excited to introduce our video series – Wage & Hour Issues in the Workplace. In these videos, members of LCW’s Wage & Hour practice group will provide various tips that can be implemented in your workplace. We hope that you will find these clips informative and helpful!  …